Although he’s a big cricket fan and initially wanted to become a cricketer, taking up the jersey number of Virat Kohli (18) is a mere coincidence for Shubham Chaudhary.
“I love cricket, I played a lot in my childhood, volleyball came much later. But the jersey number was given to me, I did not choose it,” the Mumbai Meteors’ universal tells Sportstar.
With 134 points this season, the 30-year-old has emerged as one of the best players in the Prime Volleyball League. Last season, Chaudhary only managed to register 46 points for Kochi Blue Spikers.
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A change of team to Meteors and an added focus on fitness has made the difference for Chaudhary. “During the pre-season camp, we worked a lot on movements and fitness. I’ve also worked on my fitness throughout the year. I’m moving better and feeling better,” he says.
Chaudhary, who reperesents Haryana in the senior nationals, has yet to break through on the international stage. However, his impressive performances in the PVL this year have turned heads.
While he is thriving in a universal role, Chaudhary’s true passion is offence. He has 103 attack points with a success rate of 44.41 percent, the fourth-best in the league. He has an impressive average of 8.58 attack points per match after the end of the Super 5.
It is not just stats that distinguish him, it is the way he operates. He never shies away from taking responsibility, be it serving in the crunch moments or coming up with fierce spikes when his team needs him. He was instrumental in helping Meteors advance to the Super 5.
“I like to contribute in every department. My position demands me to be equally skilful in receiving and setting, but to be honest, I love smashing the most,” Chaudhary says.
Haryana’s Shubham Chaudhary (Extreme R)) scoring a point against Himachal Pradesh during the National volleyball tournament in 2014. | Photo Credit: S. Ramesh Kurup/The Hindu
His 14 blocks and 14 rebounds make him one of the best defenders this season. “I’m always trying to learn. I used to train in my hometown with very few players, but now I’m training with more people which is helping,” Chaudhary says.
He credits his franchise for fostering an atmosphere where it is easy to settle in. “Before the start of the tournament, we spent 25 days in a pre-season camp in Bangalore where we focused on team bonding,” he adds.
In Meteors’ first Super 5 match, against the Ahmedabad Defenders, Chaudhary landed awkwardly while blocking a spike and injured his ankle. Although he was ruled out of the remaining match, he overcame the injury and made a return in the next.
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Chaudhary credits Meteors coach Sunny Joseph for helping him bring out the best. “Training under the guidance of sir has helped me understand the game differently. I’ve become more disciplined which is required for our system,” he explains.
The 203 cm-tall athlete explains how his father encouraged him to take up volleyball. “I was not interested in volleyball but my father Mahavir Singh, who was a state-level volleyball player, encouraged me to take up the sport when I started growing tall in my teenage,” he says.
Chaudhary started to play regularly when he enrolled in Kurukshetra University before getting selected for Haryana in the senior nationals in 2015. He was part of U Mumba Volley in the inaugural Pro Volleyball League, which was later discontinued.
He believes that foreign players and coaches add value to the Indian players. “In terms of system and techniques, the foreign players are way ahead of us and we are learning from them every day,” he says.
Although it narrowly missed out on advancing to the eliminator, the Mumbai outfit won admirers for its spirited display. At 30, Chaudhary might not be a fresh face in Indian volleyball but, with renewed determination, will hope to break into the national setup soon.
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